Kal and Jon discuss the fact that the UK and now Spain have introduced a 14-day quarantine for all incoming flights and Kal say that this will have a devastating effect on the Spanish economy.
“The effect on the economy is eye-watering. It produces 80 million visitors and accounts for 12 percent of Spain’s gross domestic product. 6.4 million jobs depend on tourism.”
Kal describes the differences between the UK lockdown and Spain’s version saying the Spanish one was much severe only allowing people out for essentials.
The lockdown is now being eased in five phases so from, “last Monday you can sit with ten people outside bars on the Costa Blanca but there are different rules in the big cities like Madrid.”
Interestingly, Kal says that the Spanish coalition government is coming under the same pressure and has many of the similar problems that Boris has and is facing in the UK over PPE and deaths in care homes.
“The care home scandal is a major factor in Spain as well especially in the big cities like Madrid and Barcelona.”
“As the hospitals were overwhelmed the deaths went up in the care homes. We knew from Italy and therefore Britain knew as well what was happening, but care homes in the UK and Spain did not come at the top of the list for PPE and other resources.”
Jon is a fully committed Brexiteer and Kal a very determined Remainer but they find some common ground on how the EU has performed in the pandemic with Kal stating, “it is not something that the EU needed at the moment because it did show the divisions still exist between different countries across Europe. The EU just fell apart everyone was making their own rules, on closing borders and how they were going to manage this crisis and look after their own, which I guess is human nature.”
Jon and Kal finish by discussing Boris Johnson’s handling of the pandemic with Jon calling it inept and Kal pointing out the real lack of experience in the UK Cabinet.
They conclude by talking about the easing of the lockdown in the UK which Jon says is too quick and Kal summaries by saying, “looking from afar it did look chaotic, maybe a little bit premature but perhaps they had the news about the economic figures early!”
Something different from Shooting from the Lip this week but just as interesting and thought provoking. Don’t miss it!
